Chow: Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me
by Nightcrawlerlover
Summary: AU oneshot. Chow reflects on Jade, and vice versa, as he chooses a different path in life.


**Here's a new Jackie Chan Adventures AU oneshot; I thought it up myself after seeing parts 1 and 2 of the episode The Good Guys in Season 4 on YouTube. Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: The geniuses at Kids WB! and Cartoon Network own Jackie Chan Adventures. The lyrics to the songs Picture by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow, and We Are the Champions by Queen, belong with their respective owners.**

Chow: Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

It was nighttime in San Francisco, California. Chow, now an ex-Enforcer of the Dark Hand who also had powers of flight, was in a room in a hotel that had been abandoned years ago.

He had a lot of things on his mind. Thoughts buzzed around in his mind like bees.

He knew it would be a long time before he got some sleep.

Then, that morning, Chow sat on the bed listening to the song Picture, a duet between Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow. He thoughtfully smiled at how appropriate the lyrics were. He didn't know **how** he knew. He just did.

_Maybe I'm clairvoyant_…_sort of, _he thought.

_Livin' my life in a slow hell  
Different girl every night at the hotel  
I ain't seen the sun shine in 3 damn days  
Been fuelin' up on cocaine and whiskey  
Wish I had a good girl to miss me  
Lord I wonder if I'll ever change my ways_

_I put your picture away_

_Sat down and cried today_

_I can't look at you_

_While I'm lying next to her_

He then let the tears flow as he remembered…

"_Jackie, you cannot go while criminals live in my shop!_" _said Uncle. _

"_Excuse me – **e****x-criminals**,_"_ said Chow, annoyed at the name ‛criminal'. He knew the saying ‛Treat a person like a criminal, and soon they'll end up like one'._

"_Don't sweat it, Unc,_"_ Jade spoke up as Chow turned to her._

Chow then smirked to himself as he remembered turning to Jade upon hearing the sound of her voice. It was like music to his ears…

_I should've asked her out on a date. Nothing romantic, of course – just as friends. Then, after taking it slow one day and night at a time…_

He then shook his head, unable to finish the thought – or rather, not wanting to.

_I put your picture away_

_Sat down and cried today_

_I can't look at you_

_While I'm lying next to her_

Later on at the same time, Jade Chan's heart skipped a beat as she listened to the song. For some reason, she couldn't get the slim, tempermental, Chinese ex-Enforcer out of her head.

Then she chided herself for thinking such things. After all, she was only twelve years old.

_So what's the big deal? _she asked herself. _Why am I acting in a way that's not me at all?_

She tried to calm her thoughts by listening to the song. However, it didn't exactly seem to work. They just kept bugging her. _What gives?_

_I caught you last night at the hotel_

_Everyone knows but they won't tell_

_But their half hearted smiles tell me something just ain't right_

_I've been waitin' on you for a long time_

_fuelin' up on heartaches and cheap wine_

_I haven't heard from you in 3 damn nights_

_I put your picture away_

_I wonder where you been_

_I can't look at you while I'm lying next to him_

_I put your picture away_

_I wonder where you been_

_I can't look at you while I'm lying next to him_

Then Sunday came. Jade took a walk down the sidewalk, hoping to clear her head.

_I saw you yesterday with an old friend_

Against her will, those memories of Chow came back, and immediately her heart twisted into knots.

It was painful, as she knew all too well.

_It was the same old same "how've you been"_

She missed him…a lot! She remembered the black hair, those beautiful dark brown eyes (when he wasn't wearing those orange sunglasses (or eyeglasses; she still wasn't sure yet), and the black clothing.

He reminded her of James Dean, who, she remembered, had become the title of the movie "Rebel Without a Cause".

_Since you've been gone my world's been dark and gray_

_You reminded me of brighter days_

_I hoped you were comin' home to stay_

_I was headed to church_

_I was off to drink you away_

_I thought about you for a long time_

_Can't seem to get you off my mind_

_I can't understand why we're living life this way_

_I found your picture today_

_I swear I'll change my ways_

_I just called to say I want you_

_To come back home_

_I just called to say I love you,_

_come back home_

As the last notes of the song faded into nothingness, Chow got up, left the hotel room and walked into the night, the song still playing in his mind.

He hoped that he would find Jade and tell her he was very sorry for all the bad things that had happened when he, along with Finn and Ratso, had tried to be one of those on the side of good – namely, the protagonists, to be exact.

_I shouldn'tve betrayed her, _he thought, half growling, half snarling, like a wolf he had seen once when it was on the warpath.

_Can I really change? Will I?_

Chow frowned thoughtfully, his black jacket rustling in the night winds.

For a moment his thoughts turned to summoning his powers and simply feeling the joy of being able to fly without having gravity pull him back to Earth and weigh him down.

It did sound good at first.

Then Chow looked up at the sky and felt himself rise. Then – wonder of wonders – he was flying in the sky.

_I could get used to this, _he thought, and smiled.

His smile grew wider as a different song began playing in his head – one that reminded him of…well, himself…

_I've paid my dues  
Time after time  
I've done my sentence  
But committed no crime  
And bad mistakes  
I've made a few  
I've had my share of sand kicked in my face  
But I've come through_

_We are the champions, my friends  
And we'll keep on fighting till the end  
We are the champions  
We are the champions  
No time for losers  
‛Cause we are the champions of the world_

_I've taken my bows  
And my curtain calls  
You brought me fame and fortune and everything that goes with it  
I thank you all_

_But it's been no bed of roses  
No pleasure cruise  
I consider it a challenge before the whole human race  
And I ain't gonna lose _

_We are the champions, my friends  
And we'll keep on fighting ‛till the end  
We are the champions  
We are the champions  
No time for losers  
‛Cause we are the champions of the world_

-Queen, **We Are the Champions**

**Well, I hope you like this as much as I liked writing it. The song We Are the Champions by Queen is a really neat song, and Freddie Mercury (September 5, 1946 - November 24, 1991) would be so proud! **

**~Nightcrawlerlover**


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